Refracking Service Could Create 'Boom of a Boom' in Shale Recovery

“If a horizontal lateral is landed in good reservoir quality, it most probably has potential for a second life,” said Ranjan. This is irrespective of whether it is a new completion or a completion from prior to 2011. Some wells have so much in bypassed reserves, they can be refractured three times.

Through Halliburton’s ACTIVATE Refracking Service, unveiled in July, Halliburton reports seeing up to an 80 percent increase in (estimated ultimate recovery) EUR per well, up to 25 percent increase oil recovery factor of unconventional asset with a balanced portfolio, and up to 66 percent reduced cost per barrel of oil equivalent (BOE) compared to new drills. The company reports seeing a 300 percent improvement in EUR in natural gas wells in the Haynesville and Eagle Ford plays. In the oil window of the Eagle Ford, Halliburton’s technology has increased the average EUR of wells by 121 percent.

In terms of production, Halliburton has seen accelerated recovery in wells treated with the ACTIVATE process, not only from restored connectivity of existing fracs but new stimulation, turning a 4 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) well into a 6 Bcf/d well. In addition to boosting incremental EURs, Halliburton has been able to reduce non-productive time for wells by 33 percent as fracing is done continuously.

Given the fall in oil commodity prices versus natural gas commodity prices, shale gas wells that are economic – but weren’t as economic as unconventional oil wells were at one point – and that have wellbores already in place could be good refracking candidates. This includes wells in the Haynesville and Barnett shale plays, where understimulated wells and bypassed reserves exist. The Barnett play, which has stiff, hard rock, has a higher spacing of wells that present infill opportunities. The Haynesville, a deep soft rock with high pressure and high temperatures, is susceptible to production-related damage. Halliburton believes its technology can refracture wells despite this damage, Ranjan said.

During the presentation, Ranjan highlighted ACTIVATE’s four-step process – screening for the best candidate wells, designing the optimal refract treatment, executing the refrac with AccessFrac Stimulation Service, and diagnosing the refrac efficacy and optimizing the refract design for future wells using Integrated Sensor Diagnostics and FiberCoil Tubing. AccesFrac ensures that the refracs can be delivered in a repeatable, predictable, low cost per BOE manner.

In the third stage, Halliburton uses the patent-pending Pressure Sink Mitigation (PSM) process with AccessFrac to create a pathway for fluid to move down the lateral where it’s intended to go.  The use of PSM is a massive differentiator for Halliburton’s technology and the reason why its refracs are so drastically successful. In the Bakken, a well on which Halliburton performed the PSM experienced a 70 percent additional uplift in comparison to a well without PSM applied.

With its ACTIVATE service, the company is focused on the lowest hanging-fruit and lowest cost wells before moving onto more wells that require more sophisticated solutions. While not every well will see a 300 percent improvement, Halliburton has not had a single well negatively affected by a refrac. The company is so confident in the technology, it’s paying for entire refract pilot projects. It’s doing so to help companies understand the potential for refracturing in their larger portfolios, and also because of the lower oil price environment that have constrained exploration and production company budgets, said Ranjan.